Various bearing structures have been used to support the rotating dryer drum within the cabinet of a dryer. Such support may take the form of a substantially axial shaft extending from the closed end of the drum and received in a suitable bearing. More generally there are bearings on both ends of the drum. In some cases roller bearings have been used at the open end of the drum on which an outside surface of the drum turns. In other cases, the bearing structure at the open end of the drum is mounted to the front panel of the dryer cabinet and provides a generally circular supporting ring that fits inside the open end of the drum. In some cases a felt material surrounds the generally circular supporting ring. In this case, the drum engages the felt material.
In one dryer bearing structure, the dryer bearing comprises upper and lower bearing structural portions fitted together and mounted to the front panel of the dryer cabinet by snapping hooks and/or screws. The two bearing structural portions provide a ring like bearing support surface and form the front bulkhead within the open end of the clothes dryer drum, including an opening for clothes to pass into the drum. The lower bearing structural portion comprises a series of air flow openings through which air exits from the drum. The lower bearing portion typically provides a recessed felt receiving groove extending about the ring like bearing support surface defined by the lower portion and into which the open end of the drum extends. The upper bearing structural portion has a pluarlity of wear resistant glides that are mounted to the ring like bearing support surface of the upper bearing structural portion. The glides carry most of the load of the dryer drum at the open end of the drum. The glides are typically rectangular in shape and have ends that fit into openings in the ring like bearing support surface of the upper bearing portion. At least one of the ends of the glide are held in place by a screw passing into an inside surface of the upper bearing structural portion. In the past, the dryer drums typically have rotated in one direction. For a drum that would be capable of rotating in opposing two directions, two screws, one at each end of the glide may be required. The use of these screws to hold the bearing glides in place is assembly labour intensive and there would be an advantage in cost of dryer manufacture to eliminate these screws.